Conor McGregor was fashionably late Thursday afternoon for the final press conference before the UFC makes its Madison Square Garden debut Saturday night. Underscore the word fashionably.

When the Irishman did arrive at the Garden Theater, he wore a full length Gucci white mink coat and flapped it around like a ringmaster of his own three-ring circus.

“Sorry, I’m late. I just don’t give a [expletive],” McGregor blared 10 minutes after UFC president Dana White had greeted the singing-raucous crowd of about 3,000 people who had waited two decades for this moment.

McGregor might have been late, but he made up for it by making a memorable entrance that nearly erupted into a melee. McGregor challenges Eddie Alvarez of Philadelphia for the UFC lightweight championship Saturday night at UFC 205, and the two aren’t exactly getting along these days. McGregor and Alvarez went after each other as soon as McGregor arrived Thursday. It started when Alvarez yanked back his lightweight belt, which McGregor had taken.

The two squared off with White trying to keep the fighters separated. When Alvarez tossed a chair toward McGregor, it took someone in security to bear-hug the challenger and carry him off the stage.

It was all good theater. McGregor’s flamboyance and off-the-charts energy delighted the vocal crowd, which played along by yelling obscenities at the fighters in what has become a troubling tradition at UFC press conferences.

McGregor’s previous press conference — before facing Nate Diaz in August — ended in a bottle-throwing melee in Las Vegas. McGregor was fined $150,000. Just when it looked like there might be a repeat of trouble Thursday, White managed to restore order.

Both fighters returned to their seats from where they began exchanging verbal jabs ahead of Saturday night’s main event.

“Honestly, I’m half Irish,” Alvarez said. “And I’m disappointed in the country of Ireland that this is your representative.”

McGregor, the reigning UFC featherweight champion, is trying to become the first ever in the UFC to hold titles in multiple divisions. Alvarez, meanwhile, is making the first defense of the championship he won the weekend of UFC 200 in Las Vegas.

It’s one of three title fights on the first UFC card in New York since mixed martial arts was legalized in April. A crowd of more than 20,000 is expected with tickets going anywhere from $800 to $8,000 on the secondary market.

Those at the press conference got in free as will the 12,000 who got tickets for Friday’s weigh-in at the Garden.

“This is a massive enormous show,” White said. “These guys are ready to go. Saturday night is going to be a special moment when they walk into Madison Square Garden. It’s a big deal and these guys are going to be ready to perform.”

McGregor put on a good performance Thursday. He stirred up the crowd with nearly every answer he uttered.

“This is what confidence looks like,” he said when asked about his coat.

Chuck Zito, actor and fight fan, was in the audience wearing a T-shirt that read: “Dana White wants your vote for UFC in NYC.”

“I got this four years ago,” Zito said.

It took seven years of intense lobbying by the UFC in Albany for New York to become the last state to legalize MMA. The anticipation has created a Super Bowl-like buzz. McGregor’s presence has added even more hype.

“Madison Square Garden is the most famous arena on earth,” White said. “When it goes down on Saturday night, it’s going to be awesome. I usually don’t stop to take it in. But I will on this one.”